


Pour a Little Salt

by greenbloodedcomputer



Series: The Motion Picture [1]
Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: The Original Series, Star Trek: The Original Series (Movies)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-01
Updated: 2020-05-01
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:01:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 867
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23947357
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/greenbloodedcomputer/pseuds/greenbloodedcomputer
Summary: “What makes you think things are the same as you left them?”---Bones confronts Jim about taking over the Enterprise. Takes place during Star Trek: The Motion Picture.
Relationships: Leonard "Bones" McCoy & Spock, Leonard "Bones" McCoy/Spock
Series: The Motion Picture [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1726357
Comments: 4
Kudos: 31





	Pour a Little Salt

**Author's Note:**

> My response to a lovely fic request on Tumblr. The prompt: “What makes you think things are the same as you left them?”

“What makes you think things are the same as you left them?”

Bones clenched and unclenched his fists at his sides. His glare bore into Jim Kirk across the table with the ferocity of a Klingon warrior. The whole thing - the ship, the command, the ‘little known clause’ that had drafted him back to the Enterprise - was a joke. It was ridiculous. This was far from the first conversation they’d needed to have in private since they’d been aboard. Jim Kirk was out of line, but not in his usual way. He was delusional. While their previous conversations had mostly taken the form of Leonard slapping Jim on the wrist for behaving out of line, this one was fueled by pure, unadulterated rage. 

“You can’t just come back to the Enterprise and pretend everything is the same, Jim! You just can’t!”

“Bones.” Kirk’s face was all emotion. He wore his heart on his sleeve, which was exactly why Leonard was having this conversation with him. His earlier words echoed in the doctor’s memory.  _ “I need you, Bones. Badly.”  _ Jim was so ready to believe that things were back to normal. The crew was all together...it was the five-year mission all over again.

“Just because Spock came back doesn’t mean he’s the same person!” Leonard snapped. “You heard him! He doesn’t have a damn nice thing to say about us! You said you could never believe he’d put his own interests ahead of the ship’s. He…” McCoy caught himself before he went on. Now was not the time to bring his personal problems into this. “Things are not the same as they once were, Jim. The ship isn’t even the same.” He motioned to the room around them, everything plated in chrome and as sterile as a computer lab. “C’mon, Jim. Look at us. We’re old. Different. This isn’t about adventuring anymore-”

“No!” Kirk spoke with urgency. “No, you’re right, Doctor. It’s not about the adventure. It’s about that thing that’s out there-”

“Is it? Is it really about that thing?”

“Spock said-”

“I don’t give a damn what Spock said!” Leonard realized now that he was standing with his hands tucked behind his back, his spine ramrod straight. Damn it. The longer he was in close proximity to the pointy-eared bastard, the worse it got. He relaxed his posture.

The captain gave him a sympathetic look. “Bones...I...know it must be hard for you to see him-”

Leonard barked out a laugh. “Hard? You have no idea what’s happening in my head right now.”

Jim nodded. “I know. I don’t understand much about...Vulcan...physiology, but I can imagine.” He took a deep breath and turned to collapse in a nearby chair. After a moment, he looked up at Leonard again. “I didn’t know he was coming,” he said softly. 

“Me either.” 

Jim smirked at this. “I did notice you were trying to play nice.” 

Leonard nodded, crushing a smile into a grimace. “Well...Christine said it would be easier to try and get along with him than to avoid him. I figured she was probably right, but…” He licked his bottom lip as he tried to put his thoughts into words. “He wouldn’t even answer me, Jim. He wouldn’t even look at me. He just...dammit. That  _ Kolinahr  _ took every last part of him and crushed it. He’s not even the same person.” 

The few moments of silence between them wasn’t uncomfortable - a sign of a relationship that stood the test of time and space. Leonard took the opportunity to make sure the lump in his throat dissolved entirely. 

“Can you still hear him?” Jim asked quietly. “In your head?”

After a moment’s hesitation, Leonard nodded. “It finally went away after about a year. I guess putting sixteen light-years between us helped.” He could feel his heart beating harder in his chest. He’d never had anyone to talk about it with, and he’d never considered contacting Jim. Not after the initial phone call. Even though the Captain was supportive, McCoy could tell he would never side with one or the other on the matter. 

He never wanted to turn Jim against Spock. He never told him about the side effects of ripping the bond apart. About the anxiety. The lack of sleep. The panic. The nausea. Like the worst kind of withdrawal. He suffered in silence wondering if Spock was feeling the same thing or if he was blissfully unaware as he worked twenty-four seven to destroy his emotions. 

“I could feel him as soon as the ship pulled up.”

“When we were talking in here?”

“Before Uhura even called.” 

“Bones, I-”

Leonard put his hand up to silence his friend. “It’s alright, Jim. I guess I’ll have to face him eventually.” 

“What are you going to say to him?”

“Not sure yet, but don’t worry. I won’t jeopardize the mission. It’s our own personal problem...well, my own personal problem. Seems Spock has forgotten all about me already.” He shrugged and forced a chuckle. “I’m good at playing host, Jim. Southern hospitality and all that. Everything will be fine.” Even as the words left his mouth, he was sure that he was lying.


End file.
